I swear by my Chrome Shins biking knickers. Highly functional. Business on the top, party near the ankles. Light weight. Durastretch fabric. No more rolling up pant legs to avoid the chain’s greasy jaws.

To quote the caller's wife, who can be heard laughing in the background, "Oh, Ed!"

But really, Ed, I should opt for rubber bands around my pant legs? Yeah, that wouldn't look goofy.

I played the voicemail for my wife. She pumped her fist in the air, saying, "See, I've coined a new term! And he pronounced it correctly."

Um, yes. He did.

Thanks (I think) to Barbara Linsson of Northeast Portland, who wrote: "Well, the manpris might be a little silly, but who cares? That's the great thing about Portland -- there's always someone dressed funnier than you and no one gives a rip anyway."

Far less kind was Larry Ulrich: "You would never make it in Bend. Too dorky looking. This is lycra town."

Trish Randall said she had a better name for "this dreaded garment": "Chapris," because “chap” is not only an archaic word for guy but also a weird garment worn on one’s lower half.

"It’s a double pun," she wrote. "Also, 'man-pris' was confusing in your title. I thought it referred to some sort of racing event, like the grand pris."

I promised Randall that I would pass on her suggestion to my wife. Oh, and I think she meant "grand prix."

But I digress.

Plenty of people were willing to look past my highwaters and say thanks for the tips for gear that every first-time winter rider should have. They also added some of their own suggestions.

Susan Brown pointed out that Oregon bicycle commuters with AAA memberships can get roadside assistance if they get a flat or something breaks. "On that wet dark night when you have a breakdown with the bike, AAA will get you help, just like with your car," she wrote. "It could really come in handy when your friend with an SUV isn't available to come and haul you home."

Also, one of AAA's chief competitors, Portland-based Better World Club, offers the same service.

Former Planet Bike wunderkind Dan Powell wrote to say he liked the Chrome Shins and the lights that I recommended. In fact, he helped market those lights. He wanted everyone to know that he and former Planet Bike product manager Erik Olson have moved to Portland and started Portland Design Works.

"You can currently find our urban cycling-centric products in most of the Portland shops, and around the country," Powell wrote. "We moved to Portland to immerse ourselves in the bicycle way of thinking that is prevalent here, and we're glad we did."

Made of sculpted alloy and bamboo, the pump fits in your pocket and uses regulated co2 capsule to inflate a tire in seconds. You also have the option to pump up a flat the old fashioned way, without the cartridge. Works with presta or schrader valves.

On the Hard Drive blog, meanwhile, readers were suggesting other functional gear that would send my wife over the edge. Among other things, Rainlegs.